Behind The Scenes

[Chapter Twenty One]

Chapter 21

The woman's eyes widened, her skin paling to a ghostly white. "Zoe," she stammered, unable to form a coherent response.

"Mom? What are you doing here?" I repeated.

Seattle was the last place I'd expect to bump into my mother, considering the last time I'd seen her and my dad was months ago; a few days before I moved out of the old house in Arizona. They hadn't called, they hadn't texted, they hadn't checked in with Emily, Abbie, or I at all.

And now, a weekend meant for relaxation had been tainted because of this untimely run-in.

My mom cleared her throat, standing up straighter to appear calm and collected. Her eyes flicked to Ryan for a quick moment before landing back on me. "Your father and I flew out yesterday morning to meet with a few witnesses for an upcoming case," she explained. "We're here for the next couple of days, though we certainly didn't expect to see you here."

"I'm sure you didn't," I mumbled, only then catching on that she'd mentioned my father. "Dad's here too?"

"Of course he is," my mom replied. "We need to put up a united front when dealing with clients, and..."

Before she could finish her explanation, the man in question rounded the corner in a hurry, stopping in his tracks as he bumped into his wife. "There you are," he said, having not noticed me yet, "I thought we were meeting at Fiore."

When she didn't reply immediately, his eyebrows furred in confusion, his gaze shifting in my direction. His green eyes widened with recognition, an unreadable look sweeping across his features. Where as my mom's hair had grown longer and healthier since I'd last seen her, my dad's had become shorter, grey patches beginning to take over his once dark hair. In fact, pressure and work seemed to be taking a toll on both of them, as I could pinpoint wrinkles and stress marks that hadn't been there before.

"Zoe."

My lips pulled into a dry smile. "Hey dad."

He picked up on my tone immediately, his eyes narrowing as he spoke in a bitter voice. "What are you doing all the way out in Seattle?"

I wanted to laugh. I wanted to tell him that I could've traveled across an ocean without him knowing, and yet, with the words on the tip of my tongue, I couldn't muster up the courage to let the free.

He was trying to be civil, and so the least I could do was try.

"Ryan surprised me with a weekend out here," I replied, taking a deep breath to calm myself as I intertwined my hand with Ryan's. I could feel him tense beside me, realizing he'd been brought into the conversation. Having skimmed over the details of my home life with him, I was sure that he'd caught on that this was not a reunion I was thrilled about. "Mom. Dad. This is Ryan Adams, my boyfriend."

My tight-lipped smile was enough to show the two of them how I truly felt introducing them to him, but as I turned to Ryan, my features softened ever so slightly. Although I hadn't thought that meeting with my parents was even a possibility this weekend, I was glad that I was getting it over with.

Ryan held out his free hand, shaking my dad's hand with a firm grip. "Nice to meet you," he greeted, addressing both my parents with a nod. Though, having known him for a while, I could hear the tight edge to his voice.

My dad however, didn't pick up on the undertone to Ryan's voice. Or if he did, he didn't show it. "You too," he replied, seemingly friendly, as if he was being introduced to a new client. Though after taking a better look at him, I could tell he was concentrating a bit too hard on Ryan's appearance. "You look very familiar son. Have we met somewhere before?"